ByAngie
Songs To Get Your Soul Amped Up For Easter – 2017 Edition
Easter is only a few days away!
Hear the bells ringing, they’re singing alright… and so am I!
Sorry, I just can’t help myself. Easter is my favorite day of the whole year. I can’t contain it! I have to SING about it!
A few years ago I attempted to do a music series for Easter and quickly realized that it is impossible. There are just too many songs out there! Songs about the gospel of Easter, songs about Holy Week leading up to it, songs about the blood and the healing and redemption that it brings, and glorious songs about the resurrection and grace. Think about it… the list never ends!
Since then I have compiled a list of songs that pertain to this special time of year. Some are songs we sing all year. Some are saved especially for this Holy Day.
But I can’t just keep it to myself!
So I’m going to share it here with all of you as well… but can you do me a favor? If you know of an Easter Song that has not made the list, can you let me know? Thank you!
(And yes, we added the Veggietales Bunny Song. We couldn’t contain ourselves…)
Have you subscribed to our YouTube channel yet? Every week we add playlists of our favorite worship songs from the Women On The Warpath Facebook Battalion. Want to enlist in the Battalion? We’d love for you to join us!
ByAngie
Don’t Scratch! Scriptures To Cleanse Itching Ears (Part 1)
I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.
2 Timothy 4:1-5 KJV
Have you ever had a sore that just itched? You tried so hard not to scratch it, but eventually, you give in and do. Sometimes you are so careful not to scratch while awake, but do so while sleeping and wake up to a bigger sore? What happened? Did you get an infection? We all know what happens with an infection if untreated… Sepsis can poison the blood and/or the infection can reach the heart. If continually untreated, it can eventually lead to death. This can happen quickly, or very slowly, but an infection can not be ignored. However, if we don’t scratch, we can prevent it from spreading.
Right now, all across the world, infection is quickly spreading through the church due to itching ears being scratched.
It begins with a little tingle. A little bit of falsehood that doesn’t even seem like it may matter. From there it grows into a doctrine that contradicts scripture but is presented in a way that seems right because it has been garnished with twisted out of context scripture.
BEWARE! Do not let this infection spread into your heart and soul! Clean those itching ears and stop the spread of infection with cleansing scriptures from the Word of God!
The Word of God is the medicine that can cleanse and cure this infection. Here are some scriptures to apply to your itching ears:
So and so wrote a book, it’s like an extension of the Bible…
Revelation 22: 18-19
18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
Being a Christian is no longer politically correct, so we need to update some things…
Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Many like to sugar coat the verses they have read and change them to fit what they need it to be. They will state that the Bible is outdated and no longer the case.
Hebrews 13:8
Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.
If He is the same yesterday, today, and forever… then His Word is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He does not change, nor does He lie. If the Father, Son, or even the Holy Spirit were to change something, which they don’t, it would change all throughout time. There is no wrapping your head around it because it just isn’t done. So no, the Bible and what we are expected to follow as Christians may not be politically correct, but it IS relevant and it does NOT change.
Jesus said you’re not supposed to judge anyone
Matthew 7:1-5
1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.
2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.
Yeeeeaaaahhh… That’s not what He’s saying here. People like to quote that first verse and completely throw out the rest of the Bible…
Matthew 7:15-20
15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
James Chapter 3
I am unable to post all of that here, so please read that on YouVersion or in your own Bible.
Now, I will say this… it is NOT our job to condemn or shun a person. It is our job to LOVE a person. While at times we are called to correct another Christian (NOT A SINNER), we are to do so in love. If you’re unsure about what that means, then simply don’t attempt it until you are able to receive better teaching on the subject. (By the way, God will not call you to do this very often…) However, yes, we are to judge their fruit. The warning at the beginning of Matthew chapter 7 is kind of a warning to you that people are going to be watching you as well, so clean up your own house and keep it that way… Especially if you are in a place of leadership.
I can live however I want as long as I believe in God. I’m a good person, so I will go to Heaven. God would never cast anyone to hell.
Matthew 7:13-14
13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
Matthew 7:21-29
21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.28 And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine:29 For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
Revelation 3:13-22
13 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.22 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.
Revelation 20:12-15
12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
Well, that is all I have for today. Use these scriptures generously and as often as needed to treat any symptoms that cause your soul discomfort. I will follow up with more as needed.
ByAngie
Scripture Prints – FREE PRINTABLES!
How about some adorable free prints with some of your favorite scriptures on them?
Be sure to check out the matching Free Printable Prayer List on our sister site, Women On The Warpath!
Download your free printables here!
We also have the Pray Without Ceasing print available on products in our Women Bringing Heaven store. Check them out!
ByAngie
KidMin Fundraising Idea: Bible Read A Thon (With Free Printables!)
Earlier this year, I was scrambling. We were hitting crunch time to do a lot of fundraising in a short amount of time to send the kids in our congregation to church camp. I had only become Children’s Pastor in November and I decided right away that camp needed a priority… but with a small church, how could we get all these kids there?
While for most churches, things like t shirts, calendars, wrapping paper, big dinners, and things of that nature are an obvious option, we did not have the luxury of a budget to go that route. I needed an idea that would be free or cheap to start up, with no overhead so that in the end all that was raised would go directly to the fund it was being raised for.
We were going to need something different than the usual. I had a few of the girls in our church over one day just to hang out and we got to talking.
- We didn’t want to do a car wash because that really isn’t cheap and in SoCal, we have water restrictions with the drought. Getting the church fined by the water department just wasn’t on my list of goals and probably wouldn’t be a good example of obedience on my part.
- We would do bake sales and things, but knew they would only go so far. The youth was already selling candy bars and sodas after services and during events. (A great fundraiser also!)
- We were already planning a CD of the youth and children singing that could be purchased by donation.
- The well known flamingo fundraiser seemed like a lot of fun, but didn’t seem like a good fit for our church.
What else could we do?
One of the girls mentioned a Jog A Thon that her school had just done. It had been successful and raised quite a bit of money for science camp. I replied, “Yeah, but I don’t think we could do much with that in this situation… Those are fun though. I always liked read a thons when I was a kid.” Then it was like the light bulb hit us both at the same time:
A Bible Read A Thon!
The Benefits:
- Kids dig deeper in the Word of God
- Money is raised
Um, I would list cons except, well, there aren’t any!
Now, I hear you saying: Why are we paying kids to do something that they should be doing for God on their own already?
I know you’re saying it because before I decided for sure myself to approach the leadership of my church with this idea I wrestled it all out.
Then I realized… We’re not actually PAYING the KIDS. Yeah, they benefit by what the money is raised towards, but no one is actually handing them money. In fact, we are teaching them to build a habit of reading the Bible every day. We are helping them plant those seeds in their hearts. The elders and families of the congregation are encouraging the kids and youth to build a stronger relationship with the Lord!
So how did Disciple Training Academy (our children’s ministry, more on that in another post) put together our Bible Read A Thon?
Two months later, I FINALLY decided to go through with our Bible Read A Thon. I drew up forms and handed them out. Shani put information in our church bulletins that the kids would be looking for sponsors to pledge towards an amount per scripture/chapter/book and that the amount could be capped out. (For younger children, we did per Bible story from a Bible story book. (And that could be read to them by a parent or older sibling.)
Now for the tricky part… There had to be proof that they actually did the reading they said they did… There were options…
- They could write a summary of what they read on the form or on a separate piece of paper, in an email, etc.
- They could send me a video or voice recording of themselves giving a summary on FB/Instagram/text… but not SnapChat. I had to have proof in case anyone asked.
- They could tell me in person and I could take a video or voice recording.
Did it pay off?
Spiritually speaking? Of course! Bibles were being read and hearts were growing! I believe it paid off more in what was read than what was raised. You can’t go wrong with Bible reading!
Financially? Considering how small of a group we had that participated, yes. Definitely. In fact, most of our money for camp was raised in a short amount of time from this fundraiser!
What would I have changed?
The timing. Because we were in a time crunch and had so many different projects going at one time, I was too distracted to realize I ran this fundraiser during finals. Believe me, my oldest son let me know plenty of times that my timing was terrible. The kids were still reading, but had it been done during a different time they could have read a lot more.
I also would have made better forms. At the time, I was trying out a different Office software than the usual good ol’ Microsoft. I didn’t realize all the formatting issues I would have when it came to print. Simpler would have been better as well. The forms I made were printed on card stock, and I am still very happy with that decision. Those forms went through a lot by the time the fundraiser was over.
Want a freebie?
Feel free to download this template for your own church’s Bible Read A Thon. You will still have to attach cover letters to both your pledge form and reading logs to explain them, but maybe this can cut out one step for you or give you some ideas to format your own… Speaking of which, if you have any ideas to add to this, please let me know!
Click HERE to DOWNLOAD your free printable Bible Read A Thon Pledge Form!
Click HERE to DOWNLOAD your free printable Bible Read A Thon Reading Log Form!
What are some of your favorite church fundraising ideas?
Tell me in the comments!
ByAngie
Will You Cry Out With Us On September 23rd?
Have you heard of Cry Out 16?
On September 23rd, women all over the United States will be uniting in prayer together in a simulcast prayer event.
If you are near Water Valley, KY, you can join Emily, Karen, Judye, and other ladies at Pentecostal Tabernacle. You can find more information on their website by clicking here.
If you are near San Bernardino, CA, you are invited to join Diania (I’m trying to convince her to join us back on RSHTH 😉 ), Shani, and myself (Angie) at Trinity Full Gospel Church. We have a Facebook event set up for this location and you can find more information by going to that page by clicking here.
It is time for us to CRY OUT! Join us in prayer for our nation, our families, and for REVIVAL!
PS: We’d love it if you joined us in our Intercessory Prayer Facebook group, Women on the Warpath!
ByAngie
It’s Our 5 Year Blogiversary! Time For A GIVEAWAY!!!
Happy birthday (well, last week) to us!
In August of 2011, Raising Sticky Hands To Heaven launched. I can’t believe it has already been 5 years! So much has changed, but still the same… I love seeing what God is doing!
We have a lot of big things coming up, and this year brought some exciting things as well. For example, have you joined Women On The Warpath? I think that is probably my favorite part of this blog ministry right now. We actually envisioned something very similar when we first began this blog. To see the dream God gave us at the beginning coming in to existence is exhilarating.
Another dream God gave me a few years ago for Raising Sticky Hands To Heaven was a free online ladies retreat. I’m praying that this can all fall in to place soon. Would you be interested? Let me know!
Alright, lets get to the giveaway… Time to celebrate!
1 blessed winner will receive the following…
Danielle has generously donated some coffee from her favorite coffee shop, Jitters, and a coffee mug. (She has sent me coffee from Jitters before. You WANT this. SO good!)
We are also including 5 gift cards to Amazon.com in the amount of $5 each! 1 $5 gift card for each of the 5 years of Raising Sticky Hands To Heaven! (Okay, I’ll probably mail it out as 1 $25 gift card, but that doesn’t sound as fun…)
This giveaway is open to those who are age 18 and over residing in the US and Canada only. Writers for Raising Sticky Hands To Heaven and their immediate families are not eligible to enter. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Jitters Coffee or Amazon.com. We hereby release Jitters and Amazon.com of any liability. Winner will be announced in this blog post in a reply to their comment at, or soon after, 11pm pacific time after the giveaway ends. If the winner does not respond after 24 hours, a new winner will be picked. Please allow up to 6 weeks to receive your prize. RaisingStickyHands.com reserves the right, in its sole discretion to disqualify any person tampering with the entry process, the operation of the web site or otherwise in violation of these Official Rules. RaisingStickyHands.com further reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to cancel, terminate or modify this contest if the contest is compromised by virus, technical corruption, non-authorized human intervention, or any other causes which, in the sole discretion of the RaisingStickyHands.com, corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness, proper play or integrity of the contest. RaisingStickyHands.com reserves the right in its sole discretion to disqualify any individual it believes has tampered with the entry process. In the event of cancellation or termination, RaisingStickyHands.com reserves the right to select the potential winner in a random drawing from among all eligible, non-suspect entries received prior to date of cancellation or termination. CAUTION: ANY ATTEMPT TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE THE WEBSITE OR UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THIS contest IS A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS, AND SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, RaisingStickyHands.com WILL DISQUALIFY ANY SUCH INDIVIDUAL AND RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES (INCLUDING ATTORNEYS’ FEES) AND OTHER REMEDIES FROM ANY SUCH INDIVIDUAL TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW. If you have any additional questions – feel free to send us an email! Raising Sticky Hands To Heaven will not sell or use the photos or emails associated with this giveaway in any other way.
ByAngie
Is Church Camp Worth It? Part 4: Well, Is It?
This blog post is the fourth installment of a series on church camp. You can find the first post about Kids Camp by clicking this link here, the second post about Junior High Camp by clicking on this link, and the third post about Senior camp can be found by clicking this link.
Disclaimer:
I should have stated this from the beginning… No one asked me to write this series. I actually had no intention of blogging about church camp at all. Last Thursday, I was working on homeschool planning for this upcoming school year and praying over our family’s direction when I felt that I needed to write this all out. It hit me out of nowhere, I walked in to my laptop, started typing, and what you see is the result. Hopefully I have not upset anyone with my doing this… But what you see is honest and from my heart. Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s move on… shall we?
It’s a TON of work…
Alright, so you’ve heard all about what goes on at each camp. Now let me respond to some concerns you may be having… You know that it is very involved to pack everything necessary for one camper to be prepared while on the campground. The cost seems like just one more expense… And what about the fundraising? School is about to start back up when camp is going on and there are other things that you could be doing with your child’s time. So why bother with church camp?
Well, yeah, it is time consuming to pack for camp. You aren’t just packing a suitcase as though you are going to stay in a hotel. Other than food, you need to pack almost as though you are going full blown camping. But would you do it without complaint to send your child to another camp? Scouts camp, sports camp, science camp…
The cost, well, this depends… What campground are you going to? There are some really big camps out there, all frills and they still offer a spiritual experience for you kids and teens. SoCal Youth church camp is pretty basic in the way of amenities, bringing the costs down to be much lower than most others. Nothing fancy, but still nice. Do the campers complain? Not a peep!
The joys of fundraising…
Not everyone can afford to send their kids to camp… Fundraising, if done properly, does not have to be as daunting. My personal opinion? It should begin the week that camp ends for the following year. There are many creative ways to go about this and they don’t have to be boring. One idea would be a monthly sponsorship… If you have an idea of how much it will cost to send a kid or teen to camp you can break that down in to monthly increments that if a church member felt lead, they could contribute to. Need more ideas? A quick search on Pinterest will bring more than enough options.
One idea that we used at our church this last year was a Bible Read-A Thon. Just like a regular read-a-thon, but with the Bible. (Hmm, maybe I’ll post the forms I made up for this soon…) Another was that our kids had a “concert”. The music from this service was put on a CD with other recorded music of our kids singing and sold for a donation. We had bake sales, sold candy and soda, had penny marches… And we just barely made it. Of course, we didn’t start getting serious with fundraising until April. Imagine if we had started sooner!
But you’re busy. Your kids are busy. Your church is busy. EVERYONE is BUSY!
I know. I’m busy too. This is where you have to decide if it is a time investment that is as important to your child’s development as soccer, a trip to an amusement park, or a few days at home playing video games. Which brings us to the big question…
Is church camp worth it?
YES!!!! Definitely!!!
You probably knew by now that this was going to be my answer… Right?
There is something about getting this many kids together from different churches… (big emphasis on that last part, not just the kids from one church, but many…) Giving them a safe place to have fun, make new friends, and experience the outdoors… And then standing back and watching God bless them in a life changing way that will impact the rest of their lives. With no where to be the next day and no responsibilities to go home to each night, kids let all their worship out in chapel. Yes. Church camp is definitely worth it.
But… but… but you said that you had honest opinions on what would make church camp better.
How can that be? How can I have suggestions to make it better and still say it is worth it?
Well, sit down and take a deep breath before you read this… My opinions of what would make it better have a whole lot more to do with those of us sending our kids up there, not those running the camp.
I know. Ouch. It is our fault that our kids are not getting more out of camp…
Let me explain:
- First and foremost: Camp is NOT a reward and churches need to stop treating it as such. Camp is a REVERSED MISSION FIELD! Instead of us sending out missionaries, we are sending our kids to the missionaries. They are meeting Jesus, learning about God’s love, and being filled with the Holy Spirit. The main focus of camp, even with all the fun stuff, is that these kids have a personal relationship with all 3 members of the God head. Would you say to someone, “If you do this, that, and the other, you can get to know Jesus. But you have to prove to us that you’ve earned it… and you just don’t seem like you deserve it.” No way! While sports and other activities make an impact on our kids, so does camp. If it seems to you that church camp would benefit your child, and for most it would, then it should be held to the same regard.
- You need to follow up with the kids in your church that attended camp. Don’t just send them home and forget them. Check in with them and see how they are doing. If they don’t always attend your church, reach out and invite them to services and events. Ask those that are regular attendees about camp throughout the year. Don’t let that fire die!
- More PASTORS need to attend camp with their churches! Not every pastor can physically handle it, and that I completely understand. But hey, what about associate pastors? Elders? Kids and teens need to have a connection with their church leadership before they graduate high school and this is a great way to build that! Another great reason would be so that the shepherd can tend to their flock… Just because you send grown ups to camp, it does not mean that they behave as grown ups or that they are able to reign in everyone they have been given charge over. (Remember that pranking issue?) If you were a kid or teen, would you want to embarrass your pastor and church right in front of them? Most wouldn’t. Can’t go? Give those that are going (kids, teens, and older volunteers) a good pep talk, encourage them to have a great time and draw closer to God, tell them you can’t wait to hear all about it when they return and maybe have a youth night where everyone tells Pastor what they liked best… and ask them nicely before they leave to remember that they are representatives of your church.
- Each camper needs a leader from their church that they can relate to. This is a BIG deal! Boys need a Godly man to relate to and watch over them. Girls need a Godly woman. Someone that will pray with them in the altar… Some kids are okay praying with their parents. Some kids need someone else. Churches need to send more than 1 person per church. At least 2… if not more. Afraid you are sending too many workers? Remember that there will be small churches up there that will not be able to send as many and consider that leaders are always needed in the altar. (All workers are subject to a background check and vetted by their pastor.)
- Another cry for volunteers… Are you a nurse? A short order cook? Are you trained as a lifeguard? Camps need these! Pray about volunteering! Even with a great pool area, our camp did not have swimming this year because we were unable to find a lifeguard that was available.
- Parents: Please send enough money with your kids and teens! Some kids showed up with only $10. That’s enough to get through about 1 day of Junior High or Senior Camp. Send bottled water, as they need to remember to drink more than they do at home if the elevation is different than what is at home. Talk to them about keeping their money safe and not losing it. See if your camp offers a bank. SoCal Youth offered a bank for Kids Camp but not for the Teen Camps. (I heard plenty of complaints about there not being one for the older kids. I don’t know if this is something that will change or not.)
- BRING THE SONGS HOME! When those from your church and family have returned, ask them about the songs that were sung. Which ones were their favorites? Download them and play them often. Worship leaders: Add them to your lineup. Sing them during altar calls. (Yes, altar calls. Bring them back. More on that in another post…) Keep those memories of what God did for them alive! We all know how a song can bring back a memory… Remind them of what God did for them at camp!
- Pray over each and every camper and worker that you are sending to camp: over their hearts, for their safety… PRAY THAT THEY DO NOT GET SICK! Remember how I said in that first post that it seemed like the ones who needed to be there most got sick? They may not even have to go home, but they may miss a chapel service that they need to be in. The girl from our church that went to Senior Camp worked harder than any of the other campers from our church to get there. She LOVED chapel! She became sick on the last day and when I arrived at the campground I asked her if she wanted to go home. Nope, she wanted to stay for chapel because she knew that last service was going to be amazing. Poor thing became so sick right at the beginning of the service and had to spend the next several hours in the nurses station just to be well enough to handle the ride home. She would have greatly benefited from this service and it broke our hearts! Pray hedges of protection around those that are going, and keep praying until they come home!
Now, for some other thoughts:
I know, you’re sick of hearing what I have to say by now… But hear me out. Please.
And ordained visit…
Imagine my excitement when it worked out that Sherry, along with her Mom, daughter, and friend, would be visiting Southern California… I rarely get to see her and she is one of my rocks. I mentioned in the first post that Sherry and I have a history at camp. That her parents were our District Children’s Leaders for most of my childhood… That our Grandparents worked together as pastors in the same district for many years, forging a close friendship, and working hard to build up our campground and attend camp with their churches.
So imagine how much more excited I was when I told Sherry that I wouldn’t be home to see her because I would be at Junior High Camp and she basically said, “Even better! We’ll come up there!” And they did! At the time I didn’t think of the timing being more perfect other than the memories we all shared there. (And believe me, hugging Sherry’s neck in the quad, worshiping with her in morning chapel, and visiting over a Bethel Burger was all fabulous.)
But God had a plan… Their visit wasn’t a fluke. It probably sounds to you as though it worked out almost like a cheesy movie, but in reality it packed a punch! Sherry’s Mom, Debbie, poured in to some of us while there. She reminded me of some of the original vision for the camp and told me some things I did not know. For example: Did you know that 80% of missionaries receive their calling to the mission field while at church camps? That’s a HUGE number!
A Lifelong Impact
Many of us adults that were in attendance at camp then got to talking… Those of us that had attended camps had received part or all of our calling while at camp!
Some of us that had backslid later in our teens or as adults recalled times while away from God that we were in a dire place and remembered a moment from camp. Whether it was time in the altar, a conversation with a counselor, a song sung in chapel, or a sermon, those memories started flooding back and we began to reach out to God and make our way back to Him.
When I was a camper we had a phrase, “Take the mountain home with you.” Take it to school. Take it with you wherever you go. Don’t ever let it go. Never lose what God gave you on the mountain. I promise you, the kids that go to church camp take that mountain home with them.
A Special Calling
Between Sis. Debbie and a few other “camp veterans” in attendance, I realized how important return volunteers are. Many of these workers were people that had been working at camp when I was a camper. Sis. Ross had been there when I was a little girl. I remembered her praying with me in chapel and doing bed checks at lights out. This year, she was still there working hard along with others, showing us “newbies” the ropes. I gleaned so much from their knowledge and experience!
Some people are called to work at church camp every year. Are you one of them? You don’t know until you pray about it and try it one year. You may be hooked! I will say this, I get why my Grandpa loved it so much now. Whenever the Lord allows, I will be at camp working in one way or another.
So now, after all that, what do you think?
Is Church Camp worth it?
Coming soon…
What songs did we sing at SoCal Youth 2016 Camps?
Stay in touch to find out!
And tomorrow… come back tomorrow for our 5 year Blogiversary GIVEAWAY!!!
ByAngie
Is Church Camp Worth It? Part 3: Older Teens
This blog post is the third installment of a series on church camp. You can find the first post about Kids Camp by clicking this link here, and the second post about Junior High Camp by clicking on this link.
Third… Last, but definitely not least, there was Teen Camp B.
I think you know me well enough by now to know that I’m just going to lay it out for you right here: We called it Senior Camp when I was growing up. By the way, I wasn’t the only one that couldn’t ditch the “old names”. So I’m not going to stress over it.
Senior Camp was for 9th-12th grades and teens that had graduated from High School but still attended Youth Group. Camp began on Sunday afternoon and ran through Friday morning with chapel, again, in morning and evenings. Though camp did not end until Friday morning, due to a conflict in schedule, I returned on Thursday night and brought our kids home at about the time of lights out. Since the “last day” of camp is actually just waking up, eating breakfast, packing up, cleaning your dorm/cabin, and leaving… I thought leaving 9 hours early wouldn’t hurt.
Our church only sent 2 kids to Senior Camp, my son Jeffrey (15) and another girl from our church the same age. This camp had the largest attendance of all, with 200+ kids!
Unfortunately, I began getting sick the last few days of Junior High Camp after a bad allergy attack. Only a few hours in to Senior Camp and I was laying in my bunk, curled up in a fetal position, and shivering. While everyone was at their first chapel service, I reluctantly went home with the intention to come back. However, my Doctor insisted that I not… something about early bronchitis, double ear and sinus infections, and my being crazy. I decided I should listen, for once.
So instead of giving you a full run down, I will tell you what I have gathered from my son, the girl from my church, posts on Facebook, things I heard when I returned to gather our kids (I did attend the last service), and so forth.
Kind of like Junior High Camp, but more mature.
Many of the activities were the same or similar. Jeffrey says that the afternoons were mostly free time. There were more options of things to do. Basketball, throwing around a football, pool, ping pong, horseshoes, baseball, volleyball, etc.
Again, this is Jeffrey giving me the information… my 15 year old son… Chances are if it didn’t catch his eye, then he didn’t take note of it. It is entirely possible that there was much more.
Before the evening services there was a Lip Sync Battle. I caught the last night and it was hilarious!
The majority of what I heard about from the kids was about chapel. I feel that speaks volumes!
Chapel was much more intense! (That’s a good thing!)
Mark McGaffin, Youth Pastor at Higher Vision Church in Valencia, CA, was once again the speaker at this church camp. Sermons had themes such as “You are more than a #hashtag”, “Let It Out” in reference to worship, “Sin is like cheating on God”, and more… But these were the sermons that stuck out most to Jeffrey.
A bit more of a competitive atmosphere…
As it always has for as long as I can remember, Senior Camp involves quite a bit of horsing around. Similar to things that go on with kids at school, mostly done in good fun, one cabin pranks another and then that cabin tries to figure out who did it so they can retaliate, and so forth. More than a little annoying, but it seemed that the leaders did their best to keep it under control and have plans to reinforce rules and keep the pranking to a minimum in the future.
Really, if you get this many people together… there is going to be “schtuff”. Not everything is going to flow as smoothly as the smaller camps with the younger kids.
When you have this many kids crying out to God, the enemy is going to attack with confusion and division. You have to FIGHT IT and not become hateful or negative.
Considering everything, while it would have been nice for the kids and workers that did not want to be a part of it to be picked on, when looking at the big picture… We have to remember this: The enemy is angry and we need to not let him win… both by not acting like teenagers should be expected to act like angels and dwelling on what happened, and by taking measures to lower the incidences of drama next year. After all, not every person that attends church camp is a Christian. Can we expect those that are not saved to behave as we would? For the most part, everything went smoothly and a good majority behaved Christ like.
Continuation of great leadership
Our District Youth Directors from SoCal Youth went above and beyond this last week of church camp. Nancy had her baby the second morning of camp. Everyone seemed to step forward and do what they could to help Roque out as needed. Once again, youth pastors were taking part in the services.
When I returned the last night to pick up the kids, I was able to attend the last service. A memory that I will NEVER forget is that of Roque pacing as he prayed on the platform in front of all the kids. He seemed to be warring in the Spirit so that the full Glory of the Lord could fall upon each camper, declaring victory before it happened, and praising God for the victory when it did.
Who wouldn’t want a leader like that for their kids and teens?!
So was church camp worth it? More on that tomorrow… Come back for the 4th and final post in this series!
Seriously, because I’m going to talk about the food and other (much more) important stuff…
And then keep coming back, because Thursday we will finally celebrate the 5 year Blogiversary of RSHTH with a GIVEAWAY…
and then more posts and stuff… Some in reference to church camp… Some completely random…
Probably some at some point in time about cheesecake, KidMin, sewing, or homeschooling…
I mean, the options here are really endless…
P.S. My sincerest apologies to Mallorie for bailing! I’m sorry you had to eat/drink the gross stuff.
ByAngie
Is Church Camp Worth It? Part 2: Tweens and Young Teens
This blog post is the second installment of a series on church camp. You can find the first post about Kids Camp by clicking this link here.
Second, there was Teen Camp A.
And again, I have to just get it out and call it Junior High Camp. No, not middle school camp. Junior High Camp. With the proper letters capitalized and all. I’m just weird, I know. I know!
For this camp, we had an even smaller attendance from our church. My daughter Becca (13), another girl from our church, and myself. I was very excited to spend time with these 2 girls as one is my daughter and I love the other one dearly. This camp we had about 80 kids in attendance, again a big drop from the old days. But more on that in another post… Teen Camp A (JUNIOR HIGH CAMP, heh…) was for those in 6th-9th grades.
Junior High Camp Church Services
(Okay, I’m just going to refer to it as Junior High Camp for the remainder of this post. I’m sorry, I can’t help myself. I don’t mind the other name at all. But it just rolls off the tongue, er, flows on to the keyboard/reads easier. So follow: Junior High Camp (the old skool name) = Teen Camp A (the new official name). Both mean church camp for tweens and teens. Now moving right along… and pretending I didn’t just get all neurotic so early in a blog post…)
Morning Chapel
Camp ran from Wednesday afternoon until Sunday morning, with chapel in the morning and evening.
Morning chapel began in the with a “warm up” song… They were the same songs to get the wiggles out at Kids Camp, but it was still fun. Not that there wasn’t enough exercise walking up and down the mountain from dorm to chapel and back… But we could all use a little more, right? 😉 Especially with all the delicious food! It was also a great way to transition from being loud all morning to being on task in service.
Chapel still had games, but the focus changed from kids competing somewhat randomly to dorms competing against each other in “Dorm Wars”, which also carried over in to the rest of the day/night activities. Musical pies, who could drink the grossest concoction, guess the movie title by the emojis, stuff like that. We would then have worship, which was some of the same songs from Kids Camp minus the motions, (though some of us just couldn’t help ourselves and let motions pop out now and then) and a few more songs added in. Next would be the big reveal of who won/lost dorm inspections… which involved losers cleaning bathrooms and winners being the first in line for lunch. We would then be dismissed to go back to our dorms to have devotions and discuss our reflections from the sermon the night before.
Evening Chapel – Switching It Up (Pardon the pun, I couldn’t resist…)
Evening chapel began and flowed similarly. Worship lasted a little longer than morning service. With each service, the kids became more involved and hungrier for the presence of God. Towards the end of the worship portion, one of our SoCal Youth Directors, Roque or Nancy (who was still pregnant and still putting us all to shame), would give a statement to encourage the kids to draw closer or dig deeper. A few different nights, instead of one of the District Youth Directors, a Youth Pastor in attendance as a counselor would make the statement instead. Every time it was right on point and definitely God inspired, resonating with the kids.
Strong presence of great leadership
It was refreshing to not only have Directors and a speaker that were obedient to give the message given to them by the Holy Spirit in the tone that it should be delivered, but also obedient as to WHO should give the message… and then that these Youth Pastors were obedient to deliver the message they received in the way it was intended. Whether that be excitable, serious, emotional… because how it is delivered makes a huge impact on how it is received. Then the person hearing the message is much more likely to be obedient as well. It is a chain that just keeps going down, I know. But when you have seen ministries that are not always obedient, it was exactly as I said, refreshing.
Mark McGaffin, Youth Pastor at Higher Vision Church in Valencia, CA, Speaker of both Junior High and Senior Camp
For Junior High Camp, Mark McGaffin’s series was titled “Flip The Switch”. He actually built a giant make-shift switch and presented it in a way to really grab the kids attention on the very first night, having the sound/lights people do techy things to make it seem as if it was really plugged in and could function part of the time. (He’s still working on this invention after all.) I thought it was cute when the first night one kid I didn’t know turned around and said to me, “I can’t tell if it’s real or not.” Hey, maybe it is!
Bro. Mark’s sermons were mostly based on stories of Peter with titles such as “Flip The Switch: From Doubt to Faith”, “From Guilt To Grace”, “From Fear To Courage”, and I know there was one more but here is where my old age comes in… I can’t remember what it was right now. While the messages were geared towards tweens and young teens, they still challenged some of us adults and inspired us.
O Come To The Altar
The altar calls at Junior High Camp were REALLY good. Kids came down and gave their lives to Jesus. Tweens and teens were filled with the Holy Spirit. People were revived and renewed. There were different calls for prayer each night, for those with certain problems to come down and receive prayer. Calls were also made for if those that just needed prayer for something else. These altar calls usually began with Mark after his message and would also include another call after a few minutes from our leader, Roque, or another youth pastor in attendance that had made a statement at the end of worship. These kids were getting closer to Jesus and experiencing Father God and the Holy Spirit in ways they hadn’t before. Some of them, one being my daughter, matured a lot spiritually for having only been at camp 4 days.
Junior High Camp Activities
Similar to kids camp in that there was good food, friends made, lizards caught/released (Though less than kids camp… what is it with kids and lizards? Not just boys, girls too!), and dirt sticking to everyone, tweens and teens church camp was a lot of fun.
Lunch took a little longer since for Junior High Camp lunch was not provided by the dining hall (breakfast and dinner were still provided) and was bought by each camper from the Snack Shack… the camps well known grill and snack bar… where they could choose what they want and wait for it to be prepared. This is like a rite of passage for some of these kids. Same at Kids Camp, but there they are mostly buying candy, sno cones, and sometimes a small meal after evening service. For some it is the first time that they are on their own somewhere, without their parents, with money that they can choose how to spend. Money that they can order what they want to eat with no judgements from grown ups. They loved it! So while lunch didn’t take forever, it did dig in to a bit more of the afternoon time, which was fine because there was a LOT of time.
Not So Lazy Afternoon
Afternoons consisted of optional activities from softball, basketball, volleyball… (some other kind of ball I’m sure… Do I look athletic? 😉 There was sports. How’s that? Ha!) to making tie dye shirts, paint classes, and other options. Some of the activities required a small fee, but it was never more than a few dollars and always worth it.
I quickly regretted not making a tie dye shirt… So when another day they offered the paint class, I was glad that Becca, the other girl from our church, and a friend that they made while there all wanted to do it so I wouldn’t look ridiculous painting by myself a picture that looks like it was painted by a 3 or 4 year old instead of a 34 year old. I learned a lot about my daughter and the other girls I was sitting with just by painting a picture together. Funny how that works, huh? How we say stuff without actually saying it when we’re being creative? Another blog post for another day…
Dorm Wars
Afternoons also meant… DORM WARS! Now, dorm wars outside of chapel isn’t “Oh, let’s stand around and play a game where we guess/yell stuff or get messy and gross”. No. Dorm wars means actual war… Like, not guns and death, but war on old people’s bodies as the kids run so fast ahead of you that you begin singing that old song, “See the bright light shine! It’s just about home time! I can see my Father standin’ at the doooooor”! Basically, it is a group scavenger style race. Each dorm carries their flag and begins with a card stating what station to go to. You RUN to that station, do the required activity (usually something physical, but sometimes eating something gross or a puzzle kind of thing), get a card saying where to go next, repeat. For like 3 years… or maybe it was around 30 minutes. I’ve blocked some of the trauma out. What I have not blocked out is where every hidden bathroom is located because I was drinking a TON of water and running made it… well, you get it.
Now, this is where I have to give a shout out to another counselor in our dorm, Mallorie, because she showed up and showed out. See, each dorm is required to have at least 1 counselor participate… She did it almost every time and rocked it. She also drank the gross stuff in chapel and showed us all how to take a pie to the face without really taking it. Now, me having left my brain at the Carl’s Jr we stopped at to use the bathroom on the way to camp, forgot until I rolled my ankles that I’m not supposed to be doing things like running. Did that stop me? No. I kept trying. Until I finally realized I had lost my mind, I am not young anymore (sad face), and parked myself on a bench.
After Church Activities
Did I say afternoons meant dorm wars? Oh, that’s not right. Afternoons and nights after chapel also meant dorm wars. Even more fun in the dark and better because less people see you fall or spit dripping out of your mouth as you run! In all seriousness, it was fun. I wish I was in better shape. The kids loved it. Even though our dorm (GO PIIIIIIINK!!!!) lost, probably my fault, it was still worth it… now that I can’t remember the pain.
What about the whole boy/girl thing?
With adolescence comes… crushes. I was shocked to see how my daughter acts when she likes a boy, which wasn’t bad, just something new and I’m not sure I’m ready for her to be a teenager yet. Can we go back to Kids Camp? No? Anyways, the kids at this church camp did differ in one major way from the way it was at my Junior High Camp. Less boy craziness. Don’t get me wrong, it was there and more so in some girls than others, but most of these girls all seemed to have more confidence in themselves and less need for the attention of a boy.
So was it worth it?
Check back in and I’ll let you know in the upcoming two posts on Senior Camp, um, Teen Camp B, and then my wrap up!
Let me know what you’re thinking!
ByAngie
Is Church Camp Worth It? Part 1: Kids Camp (And A Little Backstory…)
Whether or not you sent your kids and teens to church camp this Summer, the question at some point probably crossed your mind: Does church camp really make any difference other than just a giant sleep over and a bunch of junk food while playing games?
I spent some time at the youth camp our church attends last month. Here are my honest thoughts… but first, a little back story… I’ll try to keep it short…
My “little” backstory:
I was born in the early 80’s, back when everyone went to some kind of camp every year. Whether church camp, scout camp, or another activity camp, almost all the kids I knew went to camp. The majority of my childhood was spent counting down until I could go to junior camp when I turned 7. From there on, my friends and I spent every year counting down until the next Summer when we would go to camp again.
It was that big of a deal, people. Really. I’ll spare you the view of a gazillion photos that I cherish to this day. Mostly because they involve embarrassing clothes and hair styles…
We would start planning our outfits around Easter, as back then we still dressed up for both services each day. Dresses, heels, hair, the works. Packing of the bags began in July. It was a major process… and in August, it would quickly come and go.
We learned something new about the God we served, made new friends, sang new songs, swapped addresses, and went home (Took the mountain with us! More on that later..) and started it all again. When I was 9 I had a really awesome (and very young) counselor named Sherry. She prayed with me, endured my sleep walking/talking, taught me all the awesomeness that is DC Talk, told us bedtime stories about Cinderella and the New Kids On The Block by flash light. Sherry was, like, so rad… She still rocks! (I can’t leave that out… 😉 ) That alone tells you about the relationships I formed during those years, as Sherry is one of my dearest friends today.
This is my church camp. There are many like it, but this one is mine.
The camp I attended most as a kid and teen is the one I worked at this year. Formerly Bethel In The Hills (though many of us still call it by this name), now known as Mountain Pointe Campground, is a camp my family has attended for many years. As of this year, 4 generations of my family have now gone as either campers or workers. Founded in 1947 and owned by the SoCal District of the Pentecostal Church of God, this is the same camp that Sherry’s Grandpa along with my Grandpa and many others helped build to what it is today. It is where Sherry’s parents directed kids camp every summer for several years. So not only is church camp is one of my best childhood and teenage memories, without a doubt, it is also part of my legacy. Obviously church camp had a big impact on me and was definitely worth it.
But then I grew up… Right? Did anything come from what happened to me all those years at camp? Well, back to that later in this series. However, first let me tell you very honestly that for several years I began to wonder if church camp was worth it. Was it worth the time? The effort? The money? Are kids today still getting slammed by the presence of God and knowing just how real He is? Do they even get that they are there for God, or are they so stressed out without electronics that they can’t function without Wi-Fi to know how to have dive in to the presence of God and have fun when not in chapel? Well, in this series I will tell you how our camp went this year. Then I’ll let you decide for yourself…
First, there was Kid’s Camp.
Or as old people like me who can’t let go of the old labels call it: Junior Camp. (Whew, I feel better now… Okay, I’m not that bad. But I couldn’t get it through my head to stop using the old names.)
In attendance from our little church was my son, Tommy (8), 3 other boys, my pastor, and myself. No girls from our church so that meant I was bunking with a bunch of people I didn’t know… which a few years ago would have been enough to send me running home. Thanking God again for deliverance from anxiety! All together we had around 90 kids, I think. This is a big drop from the hundreds that were in attendance in my childhood, so I was a bit shocked when I first arrived. Kids camp was for those from 1st grade up to 5th grade.
Kid’s Camp Church Services
Camp ran from Sunday afternoon through Wednesday morning with chapel in the morning and evening.
Each service began with a game or two and a warm up “get your wiggles out” song. The kids would then all do worship, with all of the songs including motions. Sometimes even balloons were part of worship, which to the kids was just the best thing ever. The sermon/lesson portion of the service followed a popular VBS curriculum with the sanctuary being decorated according to the theme.
The end always had an altar call, with kids coming down for prayer. The remainder of the children sitting or that had returned to their seats were gently reminded sometimes that we needed to be reverent and quiet so that the ones at the front could talk to Jesus, but not one of them complained and some would even begin to pray for those at the front from where they were sitting. Quite a few kids gave their lives to Jesus. Heartaches were mended. Lives were changed.
My Pastor praying with Tommy during an altar call.
“Whoa whoa whoa!” Some of you are saying “Back up just a minute there!”
Let me clarify before we go any further… I want to make it clear that I DO believe that a child can give their life to Jesus, be filled with the Holy Spirit (and there isn’t a Junior Holy Spirit, either!), experience the gifts of God, etc… Jesus said, “Let the little children come unto me.” He didn’t say, “They have no idea what I’m talking about and they can’t know Me until they are either 18 or 21 depending upon their state of residence.”
So yes, we had kids at church camp that were saved and came to know Jesus while at camp this year, kids that were filled with the Spirit and felt His presence strongly in a way that they will always remember. I’m sure there were also kids who may have returned home unchanged, but there is no doubt that seeds were sown and they will never forget that time they went to camp in the mountains with those people that loved Jesus.
There were things that kids told me that broke my heart, reports that made me leap, and stories that encouraged me that God is still moving in the younger generations. Our leaders from SoCal Youth, Roque and Nancy, did a great job of explaining how to pray and listen for God to these young children and how they could talk to Jesus about anything and everything. Oh, and did I mention that Nancy was pregnant and her due date was the first day of camp? That’s commitment, y’all. She didn’t have her baby until Senior Camp a week later and was probably tougher than anyone else in attendance. She put us all to shame.
Kid’s Camp Activities
The kids had a ton of fun in between services: good food, friends made, lizards caught/released, and dirt sticking to everyone. It was a blast! Hiking, basketball, dodge ball, water wars… there was a little down time but the kids didn’t seem to notice. Naturally, the kids loved being able to play outside at night for a bit after evening chapel. What kid doesn’t love running around in the dark?
You know what else kids love? Hot Cheetos, worshiping in chapel with a giant T-Rex that also makes appearances on other parts of the campground, banging on the chapel doors while chanting “CHAPEL!” or “LET US IN!”, and seeing their leaders slimed… Yes, slimed! Sometimes it was for having the dirtiest dorm, other times the cleanest. It seemed there was no avoiding it… but Teal Dorm did, thank you Jesus! 😉
I’m in quite a few Facebook groups for Children’s Pastors and while I have read horror (and rather hilarious) stories of kids not showering and other hygiene issues while at church camps, I did not see or hear any of this going on at our camp, thank goodness! Now, cleaning toilets after little people who have consumed about 90% sugar for a few days? My gag reflex is still healing… but hey! All to the glory of God and lives being changed! Amen? Amen! 😉
While a few kids had to be sent home for various ailments, it always seemed that the ones that had to go were the children who needed a touch from God the most. If church camp isn’t worth it, would the enemy fight so hard? One has to wonder… back to that later…
Next, there were TEEN CAMPS!
Come back and I’ll tell you more… Along with my honest opinions of what can be done to make church camp better…
Part 2 can be read by clicking here.
But what are your thoughts so far? Did your kids attend camp? Did you work at a church camp this year? Are you involved in children’s and/or youth ministry? Tell me what’s on your heart and mind!
